10 Tips For Healthy Cooking

When you set out to eat healthier, it can be difficult to figure out which ingredients to use or how to make your favorite recipes a bit lighter. Here are some cooking tips to make better choices in the kitchen!

1. Always read the recipe

This may sound obvious, but reading through a recipe before making it will not only make the process easier but also gives you clues about how important certain ingredients are to the recipe and which ones you can cut back on or substitute for healthier options. This is especially true for cheese, which can be reduced in most recipes. 

2. Get to know spices, herbs, and seasonings

Salt isn’t the only way to flavor food; in fact, there are many other spices, herbs, and seasonings out there that are sodium-free yet packed with flavor and potential health benefits. A great way to get to know new flavors is by trying out new cuisines. Indian, Mediterranean, Asian, Mexican, and Caribbean foods are all good starting places for using new spices and herbs. 

3. Invest in a kitchen scale

Out of all the appliances in my kitchen, I probably use my scale the most. While helpful in baking, it’s also an important tool for measuring out portion sizes. Especially when you’re new to cooking and eating healthier, by weighing out your meats and grains, you’ll get a much better idea of what a serving actually looks like. 

4. There’s always room for more veggies

It’s easy to get caught up in thinking about what we should limit or restrict, but I’ve found that individuals tend to do better when they think about what they can add to their recipes to make them healthier. Simply start by adding more vegetables to some of your family’s favorite meals. Not only will this add more nutrition, but it will also bulk up your meal and help to cut back on how many calories are in a serving. 

5. Don’t neglect plant-based proteins

While there’s room for chicken and other animal products in a healthy diet, plant-based proteins like beans and lentils are incredibly healthy for us (and much cheaper!). Try making one meatless meal per week to start. Not only will this give your diet a fiber boost, but it’s also a good way to experiment with new plant-based foods that you might not have tried before. 

6. Become friends with YouTube

I promise this isn’t just a millennial recommendation. A common barrier to healthy cooking is not knowing basic cooking techniques. While cookbooks can be helpful, cooking videos can be even better as they show you step-by-step how to prepare a meal or an ingredient. Once you have some of the basic techniques down, you’ll find making other recipes to be so much easier. 

7. Learn to love Greek yogurt

If there’s one food my kitchen is never without, it’s a big tub of plain Greek yogurt. Sour cream, heavy cream, and even cream cheese can often be at least partially subbed out with this lower-calorie, higher-protein option. I also like using it in baking to replace about half of the butter in quickbreads, pancakes, and muffins. 

8. Embrace healthy fats

Now, I’m not telling you to start guzzling down olive oil, but healthy fats have many important functions in our bodies and have been shown to actually help with weight control. Just remember that not all oils can be cooked to high heat. For stir-frys and roasting, stick with avocado oil and leave the extra-virgin olive oil for raw or lower-heat (350^oF or lower) cooking. 

9. Choose more whole, high-quality ingredients

As convenient as packaged foods can be, try to start moving away from pre-seasoned rice packets, processed meats, and canned vegetables. Many of these convenience foods are packed full of salt, fat, sugar, and artificial ingredients while also being low in fiber and important nutrients. It can take a little time, but once your taste buds adjust to the flavors of real food, you’ll be surprised at how much more enjoyable whole foods can be. 

10. Swap white grains for whole grains

You can’t talk about healthy cooking without including whole grains. Grains like white rice and white pasta are lower in fiber and stripped of many of their nutrients. Whole grains, on the other hand, are high in fiber and nutrients, helping to keep you fuller for longer. While brown rice and quinoa are easy to find, I also encourage you to try out other whole grains, as they each have their own distinct flavor and texture. Barley, buckwheat, farro, and Freekeh are all good ones to try. 

Don’t forget you can use the Lose It! recipe builder to determine the nutritional stats of your favorite recipes. Update the recipe and play around with lighter ingredients to see how it impacts the overall nutrition profile of the dish!